Undead Labs' State of Decay 2 might look like an action game at first glance, but its deep survival elements make it much more challenging than something like Dead Rising. Here is how to succeed from the very beginning.

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The biggest movie of all time for Marvel Studios had one of the most successful premieres of all time, with Avengers: Infinity War passing multiple box office milestones on its way to setting a new opening weekend record.

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Age of Wonder: Planetfall will let you build a new civilization from the ruins of a ravaged planet after a cosmic dark age in a 4x turn-based strategy game coming next year for consoles and PC from publisher Paradox.

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Are you looking to keep up with MLB games without having to pay an enormous monthly cable bill? Not only is it easy, but there are more options available than you might have thought.

Are you looking to keep up with MLB games without having to pay an enormous monthly cable bill? Not only is it easy, but there are more options available than you might have thought.

By Brendan Hesse

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PlayStation Vue is one of the primary options available for the ever-growing tribe of cord cutters who hate cable but musthave live TV. Vuebegan life in March 2015 as a service primarily geared toward those with PlayStation gaming consoles, but since then the service has gone through a number of changes. Channels have come and gone, pricing has shifted, and the list of features and supported streaming devices continues to grow.

To help you choose between Vue andrivals like Sling TV and DirecTV Now, we’ve created this detailed guide to Sony’s internet TV service, which outlines Vue’s numerous channel packages and pricing, as well as takes a look at supported devices and offers our own thoughts on the service from the user perspective.

Pricing and channel packages

Parsing PlayStation Vue’s pricing model can be a bit confusing. As you can see from the charts below, there are multiplechannel packages available. Packages include the major networks – NBC, ABC, CBS, and FOX — but these channels are only live in select markets. While the service covers live channels for most of the country, not every market will have access to every local channel.

While local network coverage varies, the good news is that ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox will at least be available on-demand regardless. Sony has made aconcession for markets where local live coverage isn’t available, giving customers in those areas a discount on their subscription price.You will see these packages denoted as “slim.”

Access, $40 per month/Access Slim, $30 per month

For Vue’s basic Access/Access Slim packages, you’ll be spending $30/$40 a month for more than 45 channels, including staples like ESPN, CNN, Disney Channel, Cartoon Network, and major networks.

Core, $45 per month/Core Slim, $35 per month

Core/Core Slim ups the channel count to 60-plus for $35/$45, adding in entertainment channels like IFC and TCM, as well as a number of sports channels like NBA TV, NBC Golf, ESPN U, and more.

Elite, $55 per month/Elite Slim, $45 per month

Elite/Elite Slim adds another 30-some channels for $45/$55, bringing a number of niche channels and another group of sports channels, and most importantly begins to add in channels like Epix and Machinima, which are available as add-ons in the previous plans.

Ultra/Ultra Slim, $75 per month

Finally, the $75 “Ultra/Ultra Slim” package features the same full 90-channel suite that “Elite” offers, but adds HBO and Showtime to the mix. At this level, nearly all add-on channels are included, with just a few exceptions.

Regardless of where you live, each package features the same basicchannel selection, with higher-tier subscription packages simply adding in more channels. By upping your subscription to a higher price point, you can rest easy knowing you’re not going beleaving channels behind in exchange for new ones.In this way, PlayStation Vue is more akin to DirecTV Now than Sling TV, the latter of which offers a higher subscription plan that actually dumps some channels from its lower-priced sibling.

It’s also important tonote that Sony does not carry Viacom-owned channels, meaning that channels like MTV, Spike, and Comedy Central are all unavailable. If you’re looking specifically for these channels, you’d best go elsewhere.

Add-Ons

There’s a handful of la carte add-ons available on PlayStation Vue, but a large number of these channels are already included in the Elite and Ultra channel packages. Further, there are some channels that are unavailable with certain channel packages, namely the Access package. We’ve noted these exceptions where applicable.

Epix Hits: $4 per month ($3 per month for PlayStation Plus subscribers); Epix Hits is included in Elite Slim and Ultra Slim packages.

Epix Hits + Showtime bundle: $14 per month ($11.50 per month for PlayStation Plus subscribers); Epix hits is included in Elite Slim and Ultra Slim packages; a Showtime subscription is included as a part of the Ultra Slim Package.

Features and User Interface

Perhaps the most enticing feature about PlayStation Vue is the number of streams that can be watched at the same time. Vue users are granted a total of five simultaneous streams and up to 10 different user profiles per account, which outpaces the allowances from its competitors. This also makes Vue a great choicefor larger families, as several people can stream to their device of choice without interfering with or barring another member of the family.

Vue’s cloud DVR feature is also an appealing bonus for those interested in recording live TV to watch later (and really, who isn’t?). Once recorded, your content will be stored for up to 28 days. Similarly, three-day replay and on-demand content are also available for a number of channels on the service. Best of all, the DVR feature is free, unlike Sling TV’s.

Vue also has the distinction of being the only service to allow pause, rewind, and fast-forward on all channels — yes, all of them. You won’t find that on other services. For example, Sling TV only allows such interaction on select channels, while DirecTV Now only lets you pause.

It’s important to note that the user interface for PlayStation Vue will be different depending on the device you use. The best viewing experience is onthe PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 3, with an interface designedaround the Dualshock controller and the PlayStation dashboard. Various other supported devices will work as you would expect them to, just maybe not as smoothly or responsively as on a PlayStation console.

Devices

The list of PlayStation Vue-supported devices has expanded significantly since it debuted, and more seem to be added regularly. Keep in mind, however, that watching PlayStation Vue on a TV or set-top device is a very different experience than using it on a mobile device. Primarily, there are some channels that can’t be watched on the go due to licensing restrictions. Furthermore, you won’t be able to access any of your recorded DVR content on a mobile device.

Our Take

PlayStation Vue is pricey whencompared to the competition, and we can’t help but wonder if anyone reallyneedsthe number of channels its packages cram in. Then again, its robust cloud DVR and time-shifting features outclass most of its rivals. Vue also features flexibility in terms of the number of users who can access the same account simultaneously. These are handy features many users crave from their streaming services.

For those who own a PlayStation console, and don’t mind paying a little extra, PlayStation Vue may justbe your best bet for a streaming servicewith heftychannel packages — especially if you’re already subscribed to PlayStation Plus. Otherwise, you may want to shop around a bit.

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